Our first weekend trip of 2006 should have had six participants, but Ryan was ill, Joe was doing ten tors practice and Matthew, well, he was just too busy in the end. So just three of us set off by car from Buckfastleigh on a warm and sunny Saturday morning.

This was Glen's first weekend trip, so we didn't want to do more than 20 miles of cycling each day. We took the Torpoint ferry to Saltash, then leaving the car near Downderry we rode along the coast road to the beach at Seaton and then on up the long climb to Murrayton. Glen and Tao were both interested in the Monkey Sanctuary, but as usual it was closed on Saturdays, so Glen couldn't even say hello to the inhabitants!

We continued down a steep track to the beach at Milendreath, then Michael had to give Glen some help carrying his bike up what seemed like a hundred steps - a short-cut to Looe. Scenic views from the final stretch of coast path brought us quickly to the busy fishing village of Looe, where we bought lunch from one of the many Cornish Pasty shops and enjoyed it on a seat overlooking the harbour. Unfortunately the tide was out, making everything look rather messy, but a few minutes later Glen had the same problem when one of the many seagulls targeted his left shoulder!

When we had checked out the local joke shop and Glen had bought himself a £1 pellet gun we set about the steep climb out of Looe. Tao did the map-reading for the next section, taking us through some fairly quiet and mainly flat roads to Bodinnick on the river Fowey. As we descended to the ferry we could see the gigantic china clay loading terminal, used to transfer china clay onto large boats.

We expected to be charged nearly £2 each for the short 2-minute crossing, but in the end the ferryman didn't charge us for the bikes at all. Arriving on the other side with plenty of time to spare we decided to explore the picturesque village of Fowey and purchased some refreshments to prepare us for the final climb to the hostel.

Glen led us down the final track descent to the hostel, a large country mansion set in its own private grounds overlooking the river Fowey. We were greeted at reception by an Australian with very large holes in his ears who told us of the YHA's plans to sell 35 hostels over two years. When we asked whether YHA was in some financial difficulty he thought a sarcastic reply was most appropriate, so we made our way to our top floor dormitory and set about the business of showering. One of the showers was closed "for health and safety reasons" - the large notice on the door explained that the cold water supply to the shower cuts off randomly, leaving the occupant showered with boiling water!

An interesting New Zealand family kept us company in the members' kitchen, having emigrated from the UK several years ago. They watched with interest as Glen prepared his can of meatballs, but in the end he decided that Michael's vegetarian opinion of them was probably correct and moved on to his second course of packet rice. Once the dishes were washed and the kitchen was tidy we spent some time playing pool in the games room and running around the garden in the dark, exploring the wigwam and woodlands at the far end. And of course, Glen wasn't scared at all!

Next morning we were expecting rain and had planned a provisional route that included a cheap train journey from Par back to Looe. Instead, sunshine and blue skies greeted us, and it was still dry when we had finished our breakfast with our New Zealand friends. They were travelling by car to Salisbury and wanted an interesting stop off point along the way, so we suggested the steam trains at Buckfastleigh which seemed to be exactly what they were looking for.

Our new plans for the day involved riding back to Looe and calling in to the Monkey Sanctuary, but this time we would ride close to the coast and call in at the quaint fishing village of Polperro. The ride was a little hillier than Glen had expected, so he was glad to reach the village. Once again the tide was out, but we stopped to admire the view and eat some refreshments before heading out along the coast path.

Once again the views were excellent, and we all enjoyed the ups and downs that the path offered us. Sadly Glen didn't see the Basking Shark he was looking for, but with cloud cover increasing and the occasional light shower dampening our spirits, perhaps it wasn't quite the weather for basking!

The hill from Talland Bay was challenging to say the least, and we were all grateful to reach the top and the familiar Looe road that we had climbed the previous day. Michael was overruled regarding ice creams at the local cafe, so we bought lunch again in the old East Looe and enjoyed it on the same seat as before, Glen taking care to watch the seagulls this time! He finished his lunch before Tao and Michael, and helped some local boys catch crabs from the harbour side.

We retraced our previous day's journey along the coast path and up the steep climb to the Monkey Sanctuary, arriving with just 55 minutes left to look around the many enormous cages at the selection of Woolly Monkeys. The Woolly Monkeys were originally unwanted pets, and the sanctuary always planned to release them back to South America. We were sad to learn that the plans proved impossible ti implement, as the monkeys kept looking for food on the ground, so they took the decision to stop breeding and let the colony die out. Ollie, the last baby born at the sanctuary, was now half grown but still having a lot of fun.

But the sanctuary won't be closing: they are now taking on unwanted Capuchin monkeys, the favourite monkey pet of the moment, and they certainly seem to be a lot of fun to watch!

With the time now at 4.30 we sped back through Seaton and Downderry to the car and headed for home, only to be delayed 45 minutes at the Torpoint ferry which had mysteriously stopped working for no apparent reason!

Congratulations to Glen, who performed admirably on his first youth hostel trip. He's looking forward to the next, when hopefully his friend Ryan will be able to join us too.